Including Flower Girls and Ring Bearers in Your Wedding

I was ecstatic when my aunt asked me to be a flower girl in her wedding; I wanted to be the best flower girl the world had ever seen. Since her wedding was going to be on the 11th of July, 11 quickly became my favorite number. I would do everything in groups of 11, from the number of skips I made jumping rope to how I would sort my peas on my plate at dinner. (Oh yeah, I was one of those kids!) I spent hours choosing my hairstyle, because I wanted it to be absolutely perfect. Oh, and I was even pumped to wear the pastel pink dress - despite the fact that pink was far from my favorite color.

I loved every minute of the anticipation, and my aunt’s wedding day is one of my favorite childhood memories. It probably comes as no surprise that I’m still partial to the adorable flower girls (and ring bearers too - can’t forget about them!) that make appearances at many of the weddings I now photograph.

When you’re considering including kids in your wedding party, accept that things may not go as you expect - and make a backup plan if you think it would be helpful. For instance, my Goddaughter was the flower girl in our wedding, but she was only two years old at the time. She did well at rehearsal, but we still planned to have her mom available to carry her down the aisle during our actual wedding should it be needed. 

If you’re able to go with the flow, things going slightly awry can be a fun memory from the day! One of the flower girls at a wedding this summer made a beeline for the side aisle and ran all the way up to the front - which brought a smile to the face of just about everyone in attendance. :) 

As far as pictures are concerned, consider if your “littles” will need to take a nap during the day and try to coordinate their photos around that time. That, and don’t be alarmed if your photographer makes a lot of silly noises to try and get those cuties to look at the camera during portraits.

Originally posted December 5, 2022